Woman lost $340K, house and car in ‘celebrity’ love scam: Fraudsters posed as Chris Hemsworth, Michael Ray and more

Who hasn’t dreamt of a celebrity suddenly falling in love with them? For the layman, someone loved by the world, being in love with them is straight out of a movie, truly. But while some understand the probability of the event is close to zero, others keep up the hope.

One such UK woman who fell into the trap of a ‘celebrity love’ scam lost a whopping $340K along with her house and car to fraudsters.

A celebrity love scandal

Jennifer Barton, who resides in Kidderminster, UK, shared how fraudsters pretended to be celebrities including Charlie Hunnam, Nick Byrne, US singer Michael Ray, Chris Hemsworth and Alexander Ludwig.

These ‘celebrities’ claimed to be involved in messy divorces, thus needing money to fund their court cases. Posing as popular names, the fraudsters also had the 44-year-old believing that they had romantic feelings for her.

Barton shared how the scammers reached out to her on social media websites like Facebook and Instagram, claiming to be celebrities who wanted to meet her. Then, they took the chat to Telegram and shared the classic divorce story asking for monetary help.

They told her that they loved her, wanted to marry her and would come to England to be with her. The woman, who works for UK’S National Health Service added that things began as ‘general everyday kind of chat with a bit of flirtatiousness’ and while she had her doubts, she ‘got addicted’ to sending the money over, as per Unilad.

“People were reaching out on Facebook and Instagram, saying they were celebrities like Alexander Ludwig and saying they wanted to meet," said Jennifer.

“They wanted to chat on Telegram as it was more private. Some said they were going through a divorce and didn’t have their own money. It was one excuse after another - one said they were arrested, another was let out of their contract, one was in London and got robbed."

“They all told me that they loved me and wanted to marry me, wanted to come to England and be with me.”

“It was within a month or so he asked for money," she recalled. "He asked for around £3,000 for court fees," she shared. "You are hoping that the guy is legit," she said. “I have this attention from someone and I am liking this attention.”

Convinced her to sell her house and car

While sending money online is a part of every other scam on the internet, things escalated for Barton when a fraudster posing as Michael Ray convinced her to sell her house and car.

Out of the £111,000, she took a bit for a hotel and a hire car and the rest went to the celebrity. “He said I would be able to get a new house with the money and he was reassuring me that everything was going okay.”

Warning to others

Barton revealed that the fraudsters played on a person’s feelings and if someone they met online asked for money, one should reach out to friends and family. “For anyone facing anything similar, just reach out to family and friends. Especially if they’re asking you for money," she said.

Fraudsters use numerous schemes to involve people in scams. From offering a reward or incentive to posing as an authority such as the police or tax department, they can play on emotions with warnings or romantic attention as well.

One thing common in an online conversation aimed at scamming people is the sense of urgency they impose. Claims about deadlines or threats to their own life with ‘penalty’ for them or you are possible.